Nigeria’s D’Tigers began their 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup African Qualifiers on a losing note after going down to a 88–78 defeat to hosts Tunisia on Thursday.

The tough encounter, which ended 73–73 in regulation, was decided in overtime as Tunisia outscored D’Tigers 15–5.

The Nigerian team edged the early exchanges and took the first quarter 15–12 but Tunisia came out tops in the second quarter with a 23–17 scoreline.

It was back and forth in the third quarter as both teams were tied at 53-53.

An additional 20 points from both sides after the fourth quarter sent the encounter into overtime, with Tunisia coming out tops during the added time and sealed a significant victory.

D’Tigers will hope to bounce back from the defeat to Tunisia when they face Guinea in their second game on Saturday.

They will then take on Rwanda on November 30 to wrap up the initial half of the first round of the qualifiers.

Also Read: D’Tigers Unveil Squad For 2027 FIBA World Cup Qualifiers

The teams in the group will play each other once more in the concluding half of the first round, and the top three teams from the group will qualify for the final round.

The top five African teams will qualify for the World Cup in Qatar, billed for for August 27 to September 12.